Innholdsfortegnelse for 19-Aug-2023 i Amateur Gardening

“Former AG deputy editor Alan Titchmarsh made headlines in the national media when he disagreed with the recent trend towards rewilding – in particular, rewilding private gardens (see page 10). Few nongardeners would leave their garden to run completely run wild on the premise that it helps the environment. For enthusiasts, the aim of gardening is to use our skills and knowledge to plant, nurture and control nature to suit our tastes and needs. For many of us, this includes gardening to promote the wellbeing and continuance of insects and other wildlife that are so important to our planet. I think Alan has over-egged the pudding on this one. We should be encouraging people to devote some space in their garden to all things wild.” Contact us: ■ Subscriptions: 0330…

AROUND 20 years ago, the first peat-free composts hit the market. As a new AG staffer, I was excited to try them, but optimism quickly turned to despair as plants struggled to perform. Fast forward to today and compost manufacturers have invested millions into developing a new generation of peat-frees, yet some still have their shortcomings – a big concern ahead of the government’s peat ban next year. AG’s Ruth has been trialling two premium brands – SylvaGrow and Dalefoot – but I’d seen positive comments about Miracle-Gro peat-free on social media, so I decided to test it alongside Erin’s tried-and-tested peat-reduced compost. Miracle-Gro is also placing large signs in garden centres to inform customers that peat-free mixes look and behave differently to peat. This should be applauded, because gardeners…

CORNFLOWERS are one of the easiest varieties to add to your garden and this week’s free seeds are for a wonderful variety. ‘Tall Mixed’ grow to 36in (90cm) and produce pretty double flowers in a range of attractive shades. They are perfect for a cottage garden, great for arrangements indoors and create quite the spectacle when grown with poppies and ornamental grasses. Hardy annuals, sow them now in free-draining soil in partial shade for some midsummer colour next year. It may also be worth sowing some near to where you grow fruit and veg, as cornflowers are very attractive to pollinators. Sow as thinly as possible (the seeds are medium-sized, tufted and relatively easy to handle) by scattering free-hand. This will result in a natural group of flowers, more pleasing…

WHEN we moved to Spring Cottage in 2005, the first thing I planted was a row of standard gooseberries going up the garden path. I think there were five or six of them, but I took them out after a few years because each bush was laden with fruit. We got 22lb (10kg) from one bush alone one year. Picking them was a trial and we gave lots away. Once the gooseberry fool season was over, we lost interest. I removed them after a few years to save myself the chore. Looking back, I should have kept one of them! When the gooseberry flowers were out, hornets used to visit and pollinate them, especially on drizzly days. Hornets are far larger than wasps and they’re slower in flight. This year…

This word search comprises words associated with potatoes. They are listed below; in the grid they may be read across, backwards, up, down or diagonally. Letters may be shared between words. Erroneous or duplicate words may appear in the grid, but there is only one correct solution. After the listed words are found there are six letters remaining; arrange these to make this week’s KEYWORD. POTATOES SPUDS FIRST SECOND EARLY MAINCROP BAKE BLIGHT BOLIVIA DIG EYES FAMINE IRELAND LIFT MASHED PERU ROAST STARCH TUBER VODKA HOW TO ENTER: Enter this week’s keyword on the entry form, and send it to AG Word Search No 685, Amateur Gardening, Future Publishing Limited, Unit 415, Winnersh Triangle, Eskdale Road, Winnersh, RG41 5TP, to arrive by Wednesday 30 August 2023. The first correct entry…

NOT so long ago, the only herb that made its way onto a British plate was a parsley garnish that was always left behind. Now that we venture abroad more often and experience a much wider range of flavours, we are becoming more adept at using herbs to enhance our food and provide health benefits too. The advantage of many herbs is that you can enjoy them fresh, but also dry them for use later when they are out of season. Drying concentrates the flavour, so you need to use less of the herb than you would if it were fresh and, as long as it is stored in an airtight container, it will last for several weeks before the flavour begins to deteriorate. Like most types of plants, herbs…

SUMMER has been a mixed bag of weather and here we are, starting to think about autumn – which seems crazy when our gardens are still growing well and we hopefully have weeks of warm weather to look forward to. If recent years are anything to go by, we are looking forward to a decent early autumn before we hunker down for the cold, wet months. Hopefully there is still plenty of growing to be done, but it also makes sense to get ready for whatever late autumn and winter throws at us. The last weeks of summer feel like a very precious resource, when we wring every last drop of delight after the summer while also preparing for the coming months. My list of preparatory jobs includes stocking up…

IF the conditions are right, your roses still have weeks of flowering left, so it is important that they get some simple late summer care. Many roses will continue blooming until well into November, though maybe not as well as in the summer, so deadhead them regularly to keep the colour coming. The exception are rambling roses that only have one burst of blooms in midsummer, then produce their glowing hips for winter colour and interest. Ramblers can be given a light prune now, to remove spent flowers (unless you want the hips) and reduce wayward stems that are growing out of place. Cut back the flowered stems and tie them horizontally to their supports, as this will encourage tidy growth and generous flowering next summer. If your rambler is…

This week it’s: It’s National Potato Day! Fascinating facts about the humble spud THIS Saturday, 19 August, is National Potato Day. We are in the middle of the potato-harvesting season, so there is no better time to celebrate them. And, it gives me the perfect opportunity to give you some potato facts – of which there are more than almost any single subject I have covered on these pages. ■ In the West, potatoes are the carbohydrate choice for many, and an alternative to rice and pasta. We grow them in our gardens, and huge numbers of us eat them most days. However, in many parts of the world, including the Andean region of South America, the colder regions of North America and in mountainous areas of Europe and Asia,…

YOU would think that something as beneficial for our mental and physical wellbeing as gardening would be a place of tranquillity and togetherness. Well, you would be wrong, The latest figureheads to ruffle horticultural feathers are Monty Don and Alan Titchmarsh who recently came out against garden ‘rewilding’. It’s confusing isn’t it? On the one hand we have conservationists pointing out – and no one with eyes in their head can disagree with this – that the UK’s insect, bird and wildlife populations are in dangerous decline, and gardeners are essential to help redress the balance. On the other hand we have two established gardening gurus denouncing rewilding (in most cases it is simply stopping mowing the lawn for a few weeks in summer) as ‘puritanical nonsense’ and ‘catastrophic for…

IF you look at a country hedgerow in summer, after the blackthorn, hawthorn and other hedgerow shrubs have finished flowering, what do you see taking over? Honeysuckle is completely hiding the developing hawthorn berries, old-man’s beard is clinging to the blackthorn spines, wild hops and wild climbing roses are taking over, and ivy is steadily making its way up the tree trunks. These are climbers, doing what they do naturally – using mature shrubs for support to carry their flowers into the light. Supporting climbers So why do we insist on forcing climbers onto obelisks and up poles and confining them to narrow panels of trellis by the front door? Of course, choose the right varieties and they make very effective features in tight spaces. But if you have mature…

Ideal shrubs for a protective hedge Q This autumn we would like to plant a protective hedge in the garden of our new home. We want something that is hard to penetrate and offers security. What plants would you suggest that will provide security but also look attractive? Mark Hughes (via email) A I suggest that you protect your property by planting a double ‘staggered’ row of the following formidably thorned shrubs. Space them 18in (45cm) apart: Berberis julianae: Glossy evergreen leaves ensure a lustrous and fetching hedge, while huge three-spined thorns effectively deter intruders. Pyracantha (firethorn): All varieties have large thorns, which make a mature hedge virtually impenetrable. I suggest that you opt for ‘Saphyr Red’ whose carmine berries are a joy in autumn and early winter. Crataegus monogyna…

A GAPANTHUS hail from South Africa, and I’ve so many in the borders at Buckland Castle that I’m worried – not that they’ll take over like a herd of hungry springbok, but that they’ll fall prey to a bizarre 2-3mm-long grub that bores into the buds and ruins the flowers. I say bizarre, because the grubs and the flying midge that lay them have never been recorded outside of UK gardens. As such, they are a new species to science. The discovery of any organism is exciting as it makes the world seem big. However, agapanthus gall midge has somehow arrived on our shores (presumably from South Africa), but without the insects, birds and bacteria that kept its numbers so small, it was a secret – until now. Since its…